ROINN COSANTA. BUREAU OF MILITARY HISTORY, 1913-21 ...

39.of the column were to enter the town from the north werethere were three roads to be held. I took charge. of thesesections with Sean Murphy (battalion 0/C) as second incommand. The section to enter from the south was in chargeof Paddy O'Brien (battalion adjutant). Each of the sectionsfrom the north took with it a horse and cart loaded with bagsof earth to block the roads, on which they were operating,at the entrance to the Square, and. to provide cover for ourmen. All sections from the north reached the Square on time.The horses were moved, into position and shot, effectivelyblocking all exits on the. north side. A small section hadalso blocked' the road leading to Auxiliary H.Q.. by felling atree. This was done in order to prevent the arrivalof;reinforcements or the return of the lorry to its H.Q.However, the' only enemy in sight were two R.I.C. men whomade their escape through a house on to the river bankbefore they could be shots The section under Paddy O'Brienentered the town from the south and took up its allottedposition.. However, there. was no lorry of Auxiliaries on theSquare, so, after holding the town for about an hour, thecolumn withdrew without an engagement. The sole result ofour activities was the insult to the Auxiliaries in that thegeneral public saw that we held the town for over an hourwhile not an Auxiliary dared to make his appearance. Thisgeneral operation had the effect of curtailing the activitiesof the small raiding parties of one or two lorries which hadoperated up to now. As a matter'of fact the enemy forcesin the area only moved about the district in strong columnson foot between May and the Truce on 11th July, 1921.A couple of days prior to the visit to Dunmanway,I attended a meetIng of Bantry Battalion Council at which fina